Page 32 of Family Ties and Alibis

“Vinnie’s hurt!” Carlita wiggled her way through the crowd and steered her scooter toward the ambulance. As she drew closer, she noticed her son sitting in the back, a trail of blood running down the side of his face.

“Oh no. What happened?”

Vinnie slowly shifted his gaze. “Hey, Ma. I got jumped.”

“Did you see who it was?”

“No. There were two people hanging around by the back door where the armored trucks park and pick up. It’s a restricted area. I told them to move along. That’s when the guy jumped me. I didn’t even have time to go for my gun.”

Pete motioned toward the building’s surveillance cameras. “I’m sure it was caught on camera.”

“The cops are already looking into it.” Vinnie told them he didn’t want to draw more attention to what had happened, so he’d had a security guard escort them in through the back. “The cameras got the whole thing as it went down. Unfortunately, the images are too grainy for them to get a good look at who it was. I know one of them was a woman. The guy who jumped me yelled her name.”

“So you might be able to identify the person,” Carlita said.

“If only. For the life of me, I can’t remember what it was.” Vinnie winced. “Maybe if I heard it again.”

The emergency technician finished bandaging Vinnie’s hand. “You’ll need x-rays to find out if your thumb is broken.”

He gingerly moved his thumb. “I think it’ll be okay.”

“I suggest you let us give you a lift to the hospital to be checked out.”

“A dab of peroxide along with popping a few Tylenol to get rid of this headache and I’ll be as good as new.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Carlita spotted a news reporter hovering off to the side, talking in a loud voice while a cameraman panned the scene. “The news crew didn’t waste any time getting here.”

“Just what I need. More negative publicity for Treasure Cove,” Vinnie frowned.

“We can wrap things up if you don’t want to go to the hospital.”

“Please.”

With help from Carlita and Pete, Vinnie exited the emergency vehicle. He limped a few feet away and stopped to steady himself.

“Are you sure you don’t want to be checked out?” Carlita asked.

“No, but if you don’t mind getting me home, we’ll take the private corridor up to the apartment.”

Moving at a slow pace, the trio walked to the rear of the building, where a pair of security guards stood waiting.

“They got you good, boss,” one of them said.

“I was down but not out.” Vinnie asked them to give the assistant manager an update and told them he was heading home to take it easy. “I don’t want anyone coming out here alone. All security and staff will work in pairs for now.”

“Yes, sir.”

Stepping inside, they walked along a narrow corridor to the main lobby where the family’s private penthouse elevator sat tucked away.

“I can take it from here,” Vinnie said.

“Not a chance.” Carlita stubbornly shook her head. “We’re gonna get you all the way home.”

Reaching the penthouse floor, Vinnie unlocked the door and stepped inside.

The faint sound of low voices echoed.

“Hey, Brit.”